After a three-and-a-half-month fishing moratorium and a super typhoon in early September, fishermen in the Xisha district of China’s southernmost island city of Sansha, have resumed production. Global Times reporter visited Yongxing, Jinqing and Zhaoshu islands of the Xisha Islands and talked with local fishermen and community staff.
From the stories shared by local fishermen, one can easily see how China’s new fishery-related policies have greatly benefited their lives and significantly contributed to the ecological protection and sustainable development of fishery resources in the South China Sea.
Since 1995, China has implemented a summer fishing moratorium policy. So far, it has covered four sea areas: the Bohai Sea, the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea and the South China Sea. The South China Sea, north of 12 degrees north latitude, ended its three-and-a-half-month fishing moratorium on August 16 this year.
In addition, an independent fishing moratorium has been implemented in the high seas where no international regional fishery organization have yet managed, making an important contribution to the sustainable development of international fishery resources.
In terms of ecological protection, the Xisha Islands have made great efforts in the greening of islands, the cleaning of reefs and floating wastes. Fishermen told the reporter that 20 years ago, the Xisha Islands were far less clean and tidy. Nowadays, fishermen are more and more involved in the protection of the ecological environment.
Despite the maritime delimitation disputes and geopolitical games in the South China Sea, China has been actively engaged in fishery cooperation with Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia and other neighboring countries, focusing on breeding and releasing, fishing technology training and other means to seek the sustainable development in the fishery sector.